A construction crane sits atop a highrise in Toronto on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2012. (The Canadian Press/Pawel Dwulit)

The Canadian Press

Published Thursday, October 27, 2016 4:32PM EDT

TORONTO – A new report from a Toronto condo research firm says local investors outnumber foreign buyers “greatly” in the Greater Toronto Area’s new condo market.

Urbanation says foreign buyers, whose primary residence is outside of Canada, made up only five per cent of the sales of new units in condo buildings that were under development between July and September.

Meanwhile, domestic investors those whose primary residence is in Canada but who don’t plan on living in the unit – made up 52 per cent of the sales.

The survey is based on responses from developers and brokerages representing a quarter of all new condo apartment units sales.

Only projects that were in development – meaning either in pre-construction, construction or recently completed – were included in the data.

Data on the presence of foreign investment in some of Canada’s hottest real estate markets, such as Toronto and Vancouver, is scant, but there has been a push to change that in recent months.

“The results of this very important survey show a rather limited role of foreign buyers in the GTA new condo market and a very significant overall share of investors,” Shaun Hildebrand, Urbanation’s senior vice-president, said in a news release.

“These estimates coincide with the percentages of new condos entering the rental market upon completion, indicating the important role investors play in the GTA housing market.”